10-27-2002, 12:45 PM
What's with all the whimpering and whining about the wiper fishing being over? You guys remind me of bass fishermen who fish all year the same way...casting spinner baits along the shallow shoreline...even when the bass go deep for the summer...or the winter.
Sorry guys. All I gotta say is when the fish change, you gotta change with them. When wipers aren't chasing bait or boiling, they move down in the water column and that's where you gotta go to get em. When trolled Producers ain't producin', you need to think low and slow.
I have fished stripers and wipers all over the country. The guys who have had a lot more experience on them than we have in Utah just know that there are times you have to go to a vertical presentation. That means "spooning" with flutter spoons and other shad imitations...or even drop-shotting plastics. Have any of you guys bottom-bounced plastics or drop-shotted?
The other thing is colors. While shad and white are traditional, you need to break out the chartreuse and hot red in cold water. They don't "match the hatch" but they definitely trigger reaction bites. And, you also don't have to fish with a big piece of plastic, to try to match the biggest gizzard shad in the lake. You will get more "inquiries" on a slow-moving smaller bait this time of year.
That being said, don't put away your standard gear, or even the top water stuff. A couple of warm days and you can still experience the occasional late afternoon aggressive bite. All I'm offering is that nobody should put their boat in the barn until the lake is hard. And then, if you sneak out on the ice at night, and set up a couple of lanterns, you might be surprised to find out that the wipers eat during the winter too. There are a couple of reservoirs in Colorado where they catch some of the biggest of the year during the winter.
No hard feelings. Just hate to see you guys overlooking some potential. I'm down in Arizona right now...where we are spooning white bass and stripers from water as deep as 40 to 60 feet. Last month it was a wide open top water bite, with spooks, chuggers and buzz baits. Follow the fish.
[signature]
Sorry guys. All I gotta say is when the fish change, you gotta change with them. When wipers aren't chasing bait or boiling, they move down in the water column and that's where you gotta go to get em. When trolled Producers ain't producin', you need to think low and slow.
I have fished stripers and wipers all over the country. The guys who have had a lot more experience on them than we have in Utah just know that there are times you have to go to a vertical presentation. That means "spooning" with flutter spoons and other shad imitations...or even drop-shotting plastics. Have any of you guys bottom-bounced plastics or drop-shotted?
The other thing is colors. While shad and white are traditional, you need to break out the chartreuse and hot red in cold water. They don't "match the hatch" but they definitely trigger reaction bites. And, you also don't have to fish with a big piece of plastic, to try to match the biggest gizzard shad in the lake. You will get more "inquiries" on a slow-moving smaller bait this time of year.
That being said, don't put away your standard gear, or even the top water stuff. A couple of warm days and you can still experience the occasional late afternoon aggressive bite. All I'm offering is that nobody should put their boat in the barn until the lake is hard. And then, if you sneak out on the ice at night, and set up a couple of lanterns, you might be surprised to find out that the wipers eat during the winter too. There are a couple of reservoirs in Colorado where they catch some of the biggest of the year during the winter.
No hard feelings. Just hate to see you guys overlooking some potential. I'm down in Arizona right now...where we are spooning white bass and stripers from water as deep as 40 to 60 feet. Last month it was a wide open top water bite, with spooks, chuggers and buzz baits. Follow the fish.
[signature]